All-Nighter
by Sobeys
Summary: Sara wakes up in the middle of the night to the realization that Michael hadn't made it to bed. One-shot.


**Hi guys! It's been a bit since I posted anything (school is to blame for that). I probably won't be posting anything new for the next little bit because exams are starting tomorrow *sobs* But I really wanted to get something written before the darkness and despair of exams consumes my soul haha. Anyways, enjoy! :)**

A gust of wind flew in through the open window, grazing Sara's bare shoulder that peeked out through the blanket. She shifted, pulling the blanket higher and turning around, expecting to be met by a warm body. Instead, she was met by cold sheets that clearly hadn't been slept in. Rubbing her eyes, Sara reached for her bedside lamp, turning it on and looking around. She was alone.

With a quick glance at the clock hanging on the wall across their bed, Sara realized it was a little past 2am. Standing up, she went to the window and closed it, a yawn escaping her lips as she did so. She then proceeded out of the bedroom and down the stairs, knowing exactly where Michael was.

Sure enough, she found him in his study, his head bent over the desk as he pored over paperwork for his newest architectural project. His hand was running up and down the back of his head, a subconscious gesture that Sara knew all too well - he was stuck on something, not sure how to make it absolutely perfect. She smiled, watching him from the doorway, completely oblivious to his presence. She liked to watch him work, it fascinated her - the way he would spread his work out in a way that was both messy and also completely organized, or the way he would tap the tip of his middle fingernail l on his desk when he was thinking.

After a few minutes, she stepped inside the room, coming up behind him and placing a hand on his back, her way of alerting him to her presence. He looked up, startled by her presence but quickly composed himself, melting into her touch as she hugged him from behind, her head on his shoulder.

"What are you doing up?" he asked, pressing his cheek against hers.

"I didn't have anyone to help me keep the bed warm," Sara replied, turning her head and planting a feathery kiss on his cheek. "Are you almost done your work?"

Michael sighed. "I wish." Sara pulled back to look over the papers in front of them, her hands going to Michael's shoulders, massaging the tension out of them. He closed his eyes, sighing in contentment as his head fell back against her stomach.

"Can I help?" Sara asked, staring at the paperwork.

Michael shook his head, "There's not much you could do. I just have to finish filling all of this out and then finalizing the blueprints. Besides, this promises to be a really long night and I wouldn't want you to have to stay up just because I have to."

Sara shrugged, brushing her lips over his scalp. "It's okay, tomorrow's my day off anyway. So how about I make some coffee and see what snacks I can conjure up?"

Michael smiled gratefully. "God, I love you."

* * *

10 minutes later, Sara re-emerged with two steaming mugs of coffee and a disappointed expression on her face. Putting the tray down on a shelf, Sara handed Michael his cup. "So, I was looking through the freezer, and I couldn't help but notice the last box of pizza rolls has magically disappeared. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?"

Michael smiled sheepishly. "Well..."

"Mhm," Sara laughed, setting her cup down and leaving the room. She came back a moment later, spinning her keys on her finger. "Pizza or burgers?"

Michael stared at her for a moment, not sure if she was being serious. He looked at the clock and then back at Sara in disbelief. "Where are you going to find either at quarter to 3 in the morning?"

"There's a plaza about fifteen minutes away that has both and they're 24-hour places. So pizza or burgers?"

"Umm, do you have a preference?" Michael asked. Sara smiled and shook her head. He pondered for a moment and then said "burgers." With a nod and a quick kiss, she was out the door, leaving Michael wondering how he'd gotten so lucky.

* * *

Sara didn't return until about an hour later, just as Michael was considering calling to make sure she was fine. Releasing a sigh of relief as he heard the front door close, followed by the rustling of paper bags as Sara put them down to take her shoes off. He got up and went to the front door to greet her.

"Special delivery," she said, cheekily. Michael responded with a kiss and then took the bags from her hands, holding them with one while his other grasped his wife's. They went back to his study and Michael dropped the back onto the only clear surface of the desk, plopping into his chair and pulling Sara onto his lap. She wrapped one arm around his shoulders, smiling down at him before reaching for one of the bags, pulling out a burger and a sleeve of fries, handing the former to Michael. "Okay, let's see what we're working on."

Michael paused his unwrapping of the burger to point to a set of blueprints. "I'm trying to figure out where to place the bathroom on the fourth floor. Once I have that figured out, I should be able to get the rest done within an hour."

Sara nodded, reaching into her own bag to pull out some napkins, wiping the grease off her fingers before pulling the blueprints closer to her. She scanned the design, stopping to ask questions here and there that Michael explained as they ate their burgers and fries. A few times, Sara pointed out places that she thought might work as bathrooms, but each one had already been considered by her husband and there was always something that didn't work.

"Well," Sara said after awhile, "why don't you just make the secretary's space a little smaller, and then put these two offices a little further apart. That way you can have a bathroom that's somewhat central and you won't have to make any of the main offices smaller." Michael pondered over this for a moment, picking up his pencil and shifting Sara on his lap so he could write. He drew the changes Sara had suggested and looked it over a few times, scanning for potential issues. After a moment he sighed, leaning back in his chair as a quiet chuckle escaped his lips. "I can't believe I didn't think of that. I'm such an idiot."

"It's a good thing you married a genius," Sara teased, winking. She rested her head against his and pulled his hand into hers. "You know what this means, right?"

"What's that?" Michael asked, smiling curiously.

"It means," Sara drawled, "Northwestern is clearly not as bad as you Loyola-alumnus seem to think."

Michael laughed. "Northwestern was bound to have at least a couple of good students. I just happen to have been lucky enough to marry one of them."

Sara shook her head, laughing as she stated "Nope, Northwestern's better."

Michael shrugged, grinning. "Agree to disagree."

"If you say so." Sara lifted Michael's arm to look at his watch. "Okay, so it's about 4:40 now. If you can get this paperwork done by 5:40, we can sleep for at least a good four hours. Then, we just have to drop it off and then come home right back to bed."

Michael nodded, determined. "That sounds doable." Sara lifted herself from his lap and went to sit on the couch, watching him work away at his desk, his pencil scratching on the paper and then switching to his laptop, his fingers clacking over the keys. The rhythm of his work pattern caused Sara's eyes to droop, finally succumbing to the fatigue and allowing her eyes to shut.

* * *

When Sara's eyes opened again, she was lying under the covers, curled into Michael's side with her hand on his chest. His eyes were closed and his breaths were even, so he was definitely still asleep. He must have carried her to bed after finishing his work. Sara looked up at the clock, which now read 9:30. After a brief moment of debate, she allowed herself to snuggle deeper into his side, pulling the covers back over her as she drifted back to sleep.

 **Hope you all enjoyed this. I'll hopefully get another few one-shots out when exams end but, until then, it's time to get back to studying *sigh*.**


End file.
